Page 44 of Grown

Chapter 29

The Proposal

My mother’s body runs mid-July-hot all year long, despite her tongue being a cool breeze after a rainstorm.

But once you get her mad, there’s no telling what category hurricane will brew.

“How dare you plaster my daughter’s face all around the internet without consulting us first?”

“Mom!” I gasp.

“Then you pop up at her school, without our permission!”

“Mom! Please!”

“I am talking to Mr. Fields, young lady,” she seethes. “Not you!”

Korey smiles from the other end of our kitchen table, withJessica sitting beside him. Sweat forms on the back of my knees. I’m embarrassed by the homely look of our... home. We’re broke compared to his lavish lifestyle. But Korey insisted on driving all the way here to make his proposal.

“You’re right, Mrs. Jones. My apologies. I never intended to be disrespectful.”

I glance at the living room. On the sofa, the Littles stare wide-eyed at the back of Korey’s head. Through the front window, his bodyguards lean against their black trucks.

“Enchanted asked me, on behalf of her school, if I would stop by,” he continues. “I thought it would be cool.”

Daddy taps his fingers on the table, side-eyeing me. I bite my lip. I never asked Korey to come to my school.

“I said it before,” Korey continues. “I think Enchanted has some amazing potential. I mean, no lie, my phone’s been blowing up with producers and record labels wanting to know who this mystery girl is. I think it’s time we take the show on the road.”

“What does that mean?” Daddy says.

“With your permission, I’d like Enchanted to be a special guest on my acoustic tour.”

Mom gapes at him. “Not a damn chance in hell.”

“Mom!”

“I know it sounds crazy, right? But—”

“BUT the answer is still no,” Daddy fumes, voice taking up every corner of the house.

Korey cocks his head to the side with an amused smirk.

“If I may, Mr. and Mrs. Jones,” Jessica jumps in. “I havebeen working with Korey for quite some time, and what we see in Enchanted, we’ve... never seen in any of his other protégés. The label is really invested in grooming her, and then we can work on setting her up with her own record deal.”

Mom’s eyes widen with a jerk.

“I’m happy to act as a legal guardian,” Jessica adds. “This has been done for dozens of underage stars in the past.”

“And I’m sure Enchanted could use the money,” Korey chuckles, glancing back at the Littles, sitting next to Daddy’s freshly printed protest posters. “With school... and all.”

Daddy swallows back some rage. “The answer is still no.”

Mom chews her bottom lip.

Daddy’s nos are firm, walls built of concrete.

But Mom’s nos are made of drywall. Can be penetrated with the right force and tools.